


don't need no diamonds

by helsinkibaby



Series: Right Beside Me Around Every Turn [5]
Category: The Flying Doctors
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Het Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Het, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-27
Updated: 2017-11-27
Packaged: 2019-02-07 18:41:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12847170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helsinkibaby/pseuds/helsinkibaby
Summary: The morning after Zoe goes to live with her father, Tom comforts Chris.





	don't need no diamonds

**Author's Note:**

> For comment fic, theme domestic bliss.  
> Prompt any, any, moving in together. 
> 
> Title from "Living in Sin" by Bon Jovi...

When Chris wakes, her head feels heavy and stuffed up, almost like her brain's been replaced by cotton wool in the middle of the night. Her eyes feel both as if they're puffy and on fire and she can't quite breathe easily through her nose. All in all, she feels as if she spent last night crying herself to sleep, which is exactly what happened, and she's only too glad that she doesn't have to go into work today. All she wants to do is roll over, bury her face in the pillow and sleep for about a month. 

But when she tries to take a deep breath, the faintest hint of a smell registers through her blocked nostrils. Blinking her eyes, which feel even worse once she does that, she realises she's alone in bed and when she slides her hand across the sheets, she finds them cool to the touch. In her fogged up state it takes her longer than it should to put two and two together and when she does, she manages a smile as she stands up, pulls on her robe and heads for the kitchen. 

She stands in the doorway for a minute, admires the view. Tom's standing in front of the cooker, staring intently at a frying pan, wearing boxers and a white t-shirt. She hasn't seen him like that in a long time because when Zoe was living with her, he'd been very careful about how he'd let her see him - indeed, most nights he'd stayed over, he'd made it a point of setting the alarm for the crack of dawn, slipping out before she woke up. Chris hadn't thought they were fooling the teenager for a minute, but they'd all kept up the charade and it had kept the Bush Telegraph quiet, for the most part. 

But Zoe's not here any more, has gone back to the city to live with her father and Chris's heart aches once more with longing for the girl who'd become so much a part of her life. Her eye falls on the photograph on the kitchen table, the one of her and Zoe that Zoe had left for her to find, the one that Tom had found her sobbing over like a child last night, and fresh tears fill her eyes. She must sniff, or make some kind of sound, because the next thing she knows, Tom is turning towards her, his face full of concern. 

"I was trying not to wake you," he tells her, removing the pan from the heat and going to her, pulling her into a warm hug. She goes gratefully, wraps her arms around his waist and buries her head in his chest. His chin rests on the top of her head, his hands splaying on her back as he sways her lightly from side to side. 

"It's ok," she mumbles into his t-shirt. "I had to get up sometime." 

"I was planning on surprising you with breakfast in bed." His hands begin to move up and down her back. "Scrambled eggs and toast... and I've just made some coffee, it'll be ready in a tick..." 

It's easier to breathe suddenly, somehow, and she closes her eyes as she inhales his scent, lets it surround her, centre her. "That sounds lovely." She forces herself to lift her head. His face is still full of concern and she cups his cheek with her hand. "Thank you." 

Tom shrugs but still looks pleased. "It's just breakfast-"

"I don't just mean for this. For last night... for everything you did for me and Zoe when she was here... All the sneaking around and the early mornings..." She'd known he'd hated it, found it ridiculous, but he also knew how important appearances were in a small town, how important Zoe was to her and so he'd done it without a single complaint. "You were amazing. With everything." 

Tom's hands land on her shoulders, squeezing gently. "I wish I could have done more." 

She will not cry all over him again, she resolves, but it's a close run thing when he's looking at her like that. Maybe he knows that, because he squeezes once more then lets her go, motioning to the kitchen table. "Come on... sit. Some of us have to go to work today." 

He's teasing her and it makes her smile a genuine smile. She sits as he finishes the eggs, makes the toast and carries two plates to the table, sets them down with a flourish. Coffee is produced too, just the way she likes it, and they chat as they eat, about what he's got on for the day, about what she might get up to, plans for the dinner and the weekend. It's easy and comfortable, the way it always is with them and as he clears away the empty plates, sits back down and takes her hand in his, Chris feels more relaxed than she ever would have thought possible only an hour ago. 

"So..." Tom traces his thumb over her knuckles and she's suddenly - well, on guard mightn't be the right word but curious definitely is. She knows that tone of his voice, knows it means he's got something to say and he's not sure how it's going to be received. The memory of a fancy restaurant in Broken Hill dances through her mind and she pushes it away ruthlessly. That was then, this is now and she knows Tom isn't going to leave her again. She does. "I was thinking, when I was making breakfast..." 

His voice trails off, as if he's waiting for her to say something. So she prompts him with simple, "Oh?" 

He takes a deep breath. "I've stayed here most nights over the past few months... which made perfect sense, I mean, you couldn't come to mine, not with Zoe here. And yes, I had to leave early..." He grimaces. "But I like going to sleep with you every night. And I like waking up with you every morning... having breakfast together..." He raises their joined hands to his lips, placing a careful kiss on her knuckles without ever breaking eye contact. "I like the two of us, having a life together." 

Chris likes it too, has liked it ever since a fit of jealousy over a French rally driver had Tom appearing on her front porch and finally admitting his feelings for her. She's liked it ever since he came back from Africa, let himself back into her house with the spare key and she'd let him back into her heart without a second thought. Still though, there's always been a difference between them, quite a significant one. "What are you saying?" 

"I suppose what I'm saying... what I'm wondering is... how would you feel about the two of us moving in together?" 

Her heart leaps at the notion, even as her head names the obvious objection. "And what would people say about that?" she asks. "Two doctors, supposed pillars of the community, living in sin?" Because that's exactly what a lot of people around here would think and quite a few wouldn't be too shy about saying it to their faces either. 

"I don't care." He's as firm as she's ever heard him. "I never have." He squeezes her hand again. "You're probably going to tell me it's different for blokes, maybe you're right, maybe it is... but I want to be with you, Chris. When you come home from a bad day, when you come home from a good one... I want to be there. All the time." 

Chris is a woman doing a man's job in a man's world so she's made it her mission in life to always do the right thing, the sensible thing. She knows that in this case, that means shaking her head, sending him back to his place and not letting him move in until there's a ring on each of their fingers. She knows he'd accept that, knows he loves her, knows he's not going to leave her over it. 

But she's had a taste of living with him in this house, as a family, and living alone, shuttling between his place and hers, doesn't have the slightest appeal any more. 

So, with a deep breath of her own and a feeling that she's leaping before she looks, she nods and squeezes his hand. "I'd like that," she tells him, letting her heart over-rule her head just this once. 

The smile that breaks over his face is like sunshine and when he pulls her close, scoops her up in his arms and carries her to the bedroom to celebrate, she knows she's made the right decision.


End file.
